Taliban Ban Girls' Education

The Taliban-led Afghan government suspended primary school education for girls yesterday, a day after issuing a decree prohibiting women from attending universities. The move institutes a complete ban on education for women in Afghanistan.

The Taliban, which took over the capital of Kabul last year after US troops withdrew, have also barred female teachers and other staff from working in schools, which had been one of the few professions still open to women under the new government. The strict Islamist group's actions have been a reversal of a previous pledge to maintain increased freedoms gained over the past two decades.

Since its takeover last year, the Taliban has continued to impose restrictions on women and girls in Afghanistan. In March, the group banned female passengers from boarding flights without a male chaperone, and in May, it required women to cover their faces and bodies in public. See the history of the Taliban here.